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Book of the Tearwood: Depths of the forest
Transcript of "The Book of the Tearwood: Depths of the forest," written by Jullafield Myzel. =Tearwood Forest= Tearwood Forest is the biggest and most elusive forest on the shores. Many dangers lurk beneath the massive trees, but the forest also conceals beauty and a rich history. In these books I will reveal some of these dangers and wonders to the literate world. I made a total of three expeditions into the forest to gather the knowledge I needed. First was a search for the rare nightfalls berry, and my first acquaintance with the forest. Second was a quest to find the legendary city of Tal’entylar. Third was an expedition to gather more information about the different sites in the forest. In total I spent six months in Tal’entylar myself, gathering written and oral knowledge about the forest and it’s history. Of course this book would not be possible without the ones who volunteered to aid me in my expeditions. They, like me, chose willingly to put their own lives at risk in the pursuit of knowledge, and I owe them much gratitude. The second book contains information about the forest itself, and it’s often strange and dangerous creatures. Even though I have done extensive research, it would be a lie to say that all secrets of the forest have been revealed to me. But at this moment, I am as close as anyone from the literate world to understand it, and what creatures inhabit it. The forest’s tenders According to elven legend, Tearwood is looked after and tended by dryads. By the elves they are depicted as wise spirits of the forest, doing all they can to protect the plants and animals from the more monstrous inhabitants like the bugbears, goblins and vegepygmies. There are several large trees scattered across the forest which are said to be ‘palaces of the dryads’. It is at the base of one of these trees that I encountered a real dryad myself. It was during my first expedition, the quest for the nightfalls berry, that she appeared before us and accused us of disturbing their woods. However, it is my opinion that these dryads, even though they are indeed spirits of the forest, are not as wise and peaceful as the elves make them seem in legends. The dryad we met seemed well adapted to the nature of Tearwood; not a peaceful grove but a dangerous and hostile forest. She was primarily concerned with us invading their territory, and spoke to us with a fierce attitude. Seeing how well the dryad’s spirit fitted with the nature of the forest, we can now understand that the elven legend depicting dryads as protectors of the ‘innocent’ plants and animals is false. They are actually the protectors of the entire forest and it’s nature, which in this case is chaotic and hostile. Dryads should actually be seen as manifestations the forest’s nature itself. Plants As in any forest, a huge amount of different plant species exists in Tearwood. Although I am no botanist, I believe it is useful to name a few. The forest is particularly rich with rare and sometimes useful herbs and flowers. Take for instance the nightfalls berry, a rare type of plant which, to my knowledge, only grows in Tearwood Forest. The nightfall’s flowers as well as it’s fruits can be used to heal a number of uncommon illnesses. Other rare plants include the wild blue rose, which has no practical use, but is a very beautiful and much desired flower. Some plants, however are not so useful, or even dangerous. According to elven legend, species of fungi called molds exists within the forest. While molds are usually harmless, a species called the russet mold can release dangerous spores which can induce spore sickness. When not treated quickly, spore sickness can result in death. The Creature Glossary Vegepygmies These strange, humanoid creatures stand about 3 feet tall and are completely made of vegetative material. Despite that, they do seem to have a basic form of intelligence. According to elven legend, the vegepygmy species originates from goblins. Goblins infected with spore sickness from the russet mold are said to turn into vegepygmies. If this legend is true, the vegepygmies themselves are able to reproduce, since it is unlikely that the sheer number of vegepygmies in existence can originate from spore infection by the rare russet mold. Thorny These are dog-like creatures that are, like the vegepygmy, completely made of plant material. They are often used by vegepygmies as mounts. Spiders The various kinds of huge and deadly spiders are one of Tal’entylar’s major problems. They are among the few dangerous creatures that can climb the trees of the city, and a extensive 24 hour watch has been assigned just for these monstrous animals. According to many elves the many different kinds, such as dire spiders, sword spiders and redback spiders, share a common queen and lair somewhere in the forest. Snakes Different kinds of venomous snakes seem to be concentrated in the more eastern regions of the forest, but they have not yet posed any real threat to the elves or to Ashrindale. Other common creatures and animals include goblins, bugbears, bears, wolves, boars, badgers, skunks, weasels, minks and other small rodents, and many kinds of birds. Category:Lore Category:books